Jack stayed in the tourist office with Ianto for the rest of the day. They talked and drank more coffee, and by the time the clock hit half past six, Jack was sure of three things: Ianto's accent was orgasmic, Ianto's coffee was orgasmic, and quickies in Ianto's back office were really, really fun.

He waited for Ianto to close the office, and walked along the dock with him, not saying anything. Memories of Ianto's earlier conversation with "Gwen" were still bugging him, but Jack told himself that it wasn't any of his business. It wasn't, really, and Ianto either would or wouldn't tell him, and Jack would deal with that.

It wasn't like he and Ianto were dating, after all. They'd met less than a week ago, even if they'd clicked, and sleeping together wasn't the same thing as being in a relationship, although they were friends.

There was a good reason Jack stayed away from relationships, and it wasn't because of his downfall with John, his abandonment by the Doctor and Rose, his painful almost-marriage to Lucia.

He had the common sense not to torture himself, and part of that meant that he had no right to question Ianto about "Gwen". Jack shook his head to himself, took a deep breath of the bay breeze, and turned to Ianto.

"So where's a good place to get dinner?"

.oOo.

They ended up in a pub, like they had for the past five nights. Each night a different one, at Jack's insistence to get to know the city, and Ianto was showing himself to have an unvaried taste. None of the pubs were crowded, but none were empty. The employees were nice but not nosy. There was a pool table or two in one of the corners, and a dart board on one of the walls.

Tonight's pub was quiet, but large and airy. The people didn't seem to be interested in anyone's business but their own, so while most of the tables were filled, the atmosphere was open and welcoming, not overbearing.

On his travels, Jack had eaten in upscale restaurants and fast-food chains. He'd utilized hotel restaurants and room service. He'd been in diners and cafes. Coffee shops, chocolatiers, chains and family restaurants, pubs, bars, clubs. He'd hunted and fished, and eaten strange plants in the middle of a jungle.

And now he was in a pub, sitting across from a beautiful man called Ianto. Ianto was telling him about this particular establishment's personal history, and Jack was reminded of the night they'd first slept together.

He couldn't stop thinking about it and wondered if Ianto was just as focused on that part of their relationship. As he had been doing for the past five days, Ianto was taking everything in stride. Jack wanted to know what Ianto would look like out of his element. He was ridiculously composed all of the time—except for in bed, where he was passionate and eager—and Jack was beginning to wonder if anything was capable of fazing him.

Again, Jack was drawn out of his thoughts by Ianto clearing his throat. "I don't have to tell you if you're not interested."

"Sorry." Jack grinned lopsidedly. "I do listen, I swear. Just got caught up wool-gathering."

"You'll tell me if you get bored, though, right?"

"Of course I will," Jack was quick to assure him. "And even if I do, your voice is always enough to keep me listening."

A raised eyebrow. "My voice?"

"It's the Welsh vowels," he said plainly.

Ianto laughed. "I don't know whether to be flattered or… well, I don't know what."

"Be flattered," Jack offered.

"I think I will." Ianto took a long sip of his beer. He still looked slightly incredulous, but his surprise was amused, not disgusted. He didn't say anything else.

Jack tapped his fingers on the table in an attempt to fill up the silence. Was it his turn to speak? It had to have been, since Ianto had just talked, but Jack didn't know what to say. He'd flirted and complimented, but he didn't want to go too far. Had he missed some odd Welsh etiquette?

Jack cleared his throat. "I going up for a drink. You want another?"

Ianto shook his head, so Jack stood up and headed to the bar. He wasn't getting a refill for his own beer, because he rarely—if ever—had more than one drink—if that—and stuck to water for the majority of the evening. As he waited for the barman to fill him a new glass, Jack looked back at Ianto.

Thought he couldn't see Ianto's face, Jack could see that Ianto wasn't upset. Perhaps irrationally, Jack was still afraid that Ianto would come to his senses and leave. After all, five days wasn't enough to become close friends, let alone regular lovers. What they had—what did they have?—was more of a one-night stand than anything; they just didn't know each other more than that.

He sighed and turned around to head back to the table. A group of about 15 people had just walked in, storming around the bar and obstructing his path and view. When the throng dissipated and Jack was able to make it back to his and Ianto's table, he saw that Ianto was on the phone.

Though he tried again not to eavesdrop and even backed up a few steps, Jack heard several words and his earlier worry about his relationship with Ianto didn't dissipate.

"Gwen!... yes… Worried… a bit… no nothing. Really?.. Thank you… yeah, actually…"

And not even a minute later, Ianto was closing his phone and turning around to see Jack approaching. He didn't look worried or guilty—not that he had anything to be guilty of, but Jack worried, sometimes, despite his devil-may-care approach to life—and welcomed Jack with a smile.

Jack sat down, not saying anything about the phone call, staring questioningly when Ianto looked expectantly at him. "What?"

"You forgot your water." Ianto chuckled.

"Oh." He stood up with a laugh. "I'll go get that, then."

"Yeah."

Jack stood up and left, getting to the bar and standing behind two young men from the newly-arrived group. They were talking and joking, discussing the tourists they'd encountered that day in a cafe and who they fancied out of their group of friends.

Jack waited and half-listened to them. It wasn't interesting, but it was something to focus on. But when the men began discussing the latest rugby match, Jack tuned out.

Reluctantly but almost automatically, Jack thought back to the "Gwen" person Ianto had talked to in the tourist office. He'd talked to her on the phone several minutes ago, too. Were they friends? Lovers? Was she the wife he was hiding from Jack?

Alright, so it was probably not the latter, but Jack was curious!

And asking Ianto about it was definitely out of the question. It would be weird and invasive, and definitely not a part of whatever relationship they had.

"Sir!"

Jack turned around with a grimace to face the annoyed barman. He wasn't usually so distracted, and he fully blamed Ianto for it. When he was with Ianto, Jack stared at his eyes and lips. When he wasn't with Ianto, he thought about what they'd done together and what they would do together (unless Ianto proved him wrong and ran for the hills).

Jack needed to get focused, and fast.